United States
                    Environmental Protection
                    Agency
Hazardous Waste Engineering
Research Laboratory
Cincinnati OH 45268
                    Research and Development
 EPA/600/S2-84/181  May 1984
&ER&         Project  Summary
                    Performance  Evaluation of
                    Full-Scale  Hazardous  Waste
                    Incinerators

                    A. Trenholm, P. Gorman, and G. Jungclaus
                      This  report describes a study to
                    evaluate current baseline performance
                    of hazardous waste incinerators. Tests
                    were conducted at eight  full scale
                    facilities to characterize all feed  and
                    effluent streams. Pollutants measured
                    included EPA Appendix VIII hazardous
                    compounds,  particulates,  hydrogen
                    chloride, carbon monoxide, and totaj
                    hydrocarbons. The data were analyzed
                    to address questions on Destruction
                    and  Removal  Efficiency  (DRE),
                    products  of  incomplete combustion
                    (PIC),  pollutant  emission  levels,
                    performance  of air pollution  control
                    systems, and relationships of  process
                    parameters to destruction  efficiency
                    and emission levels. A large base of data
                    on performance of hazardous waste
                    incinerators  was  accumulated,  and
                    many possible relationships between
                    parameters were explored. Conclusions
                    included: DREs were generally above
                    99.99%; measured DREs tended to be
                    higher  when  concentration  of  the
                    hazardous compound in the waste was
                    higher;  the most frequently observed
                    PICs   were  benzene,  toluene,
                    chloroform, tetrachloroethylene,  and
                    napthalene;  the  particulate  EPA
                    regulation of 180  mg/Nm3 was  not
                    routinely  met;   and the  hydrogen
                    chloride EPA  regulation almost always
                    met.
                      This Project Summary was developed
                    by EPA's Hazardous Waste Engineering
                    Research Laboratory, Cincinnati. OH,
                    to announce key findings of the retearch
                    project  that is fully documented tn a
                    separate report  of the same tftfe (ate
                    Project  Report ordering information at
                    back).
Introduction

  The EPA's  Office of Solid  Waste  is
conducting a Regulatory Impact Analysis
(RIA) as part of EPA's hazardous waste
incinerator  regulatory development
activities. The RIA includes definition  of
the baseline performance of incinerators
operating under normal conditions. The
goal of this study was to establish current
baseline levels of performance through
measurements of pollutant  emissions
(including  over  40  Appendix  VIII
compounds)  at eight hazardous waste
incinerators  and  to  analyze  the  data
generated from these measurements  to
identify performance trends.
  The primary measures of performance
during this  program  were  DRE for
principal organic hazardous constituents
(POHCs)  and  removal  of   HCI  and
particulates  from  the  stack  gases.
Specific topics that were addressed were:
(a) baseline DREs that could be achieved
by incinerators under "normal"operating
conditions; (b) emissions of PICs; (c) the
impacts of incinerator operating condi-
tions such as temperature,  residence
time, heat input, and excess air on DREs;
(d) the impact of waste feed characteris-
tics on DREs; (e) HCI and particulate
emissions from incinerators with varied
operating conditions and control systems;
and (f) the effect of air pollution control
systems on the emission of POHCs, HCI,
and particulates.
  The study encompassed a wide array of
activities centered around testing at the
eight  incinerator  facilities. These
activities  included evaluation and,  in
some cases, modification of samplirtg and
analysis methods; multimedia sampling

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   and  analysis,  and  extensive  data
   evaluation to assess the performance of
   hazardous waste incinerators. Standard
   EPA methods were used when available.
   The sampling  and analysis activities
   characterized  each input  and output
   stream to the greatest degree possible.
   Typical input  streams included: waste
   feed, auxiliary fuel, and control system
   makeup  and  recycle  waters.  Output
   streams generally included: stack gases,
   control device effluent (solid or liquid),
   and incinerator bottom ash. Each stream
   sampled  was  generally  analyzed for
   organic  constituents,  chlorides,
   particulate or ash, and  in some cases,
   metals.

   Summary of Results
     Analysis of the large amount of data
   collected led to many conclusions. Those
   related to ORE included:  DREs for the
   incinerators tested were generally above
   99.99%;  ORE  appears  to be strongly
   correlated to  the  concentration of the
   POHC in the waste feed; no clear correla-
   tion  between  ORE  and heat  of
   combustion for POHCs was identified; the
   data from the eight tests suggest that
   POHC levels in scrubber water and ash
   were generally very low or nondetecta-
   ble; and some Appendix VIII compounds
   detected in the stack  (primarily trihalo-
  . methanes) appear to be stripped from the
   scrubber water by the hot stack gas.
     Observations related to PICs included:
   stack  gas  concentrations of PICs  were
   typically as high as or higher than  those
   for POHC  compounds in the stack and PIC
   output rate infrequently exceeded 0.01 %
   of  POHC  input   rate.   Three   likely
   mechanisms that explained the presence
   of  most   PICs  are:   poor  DREs for
   compounds present at low concentration
       in the waste feed; input of compounds to
       the system  from sources other, than
       waste  feed  and actual  products  of
       combustion reaction.  Benzene, toluene,
       chloroform,   tetrachloroethylene,  and
       naphthalene  had  a  high potential  for
       appearing as PICs.
         Other results were that compliance
       with the particulate  standard  of 180
       mg/Nm3 was achieved at only half of the
       sites  tested  and  HCI emissions were
       generally easily controlled to meet one of
       the two criteria specified in the regula-
       tions—less than 1.8 kg HCI/hr or greater
       than  99%  removal  efficiency.  Carbon
monoxide  and  total  hydrocarbons
provided   indication  of  changes   of
incinerator  performance   and   gross
malfunctions in the combustion process
but did not appear to be good predictors of
POHC emissions or ORE for DREs in the
vicinity of  99.99%.
  The  full report  describes the  data
analysis that led to the above conclusions
and contains other discussions and con-
clusions related  to the  sampling and
analysis methods and data reduction. The
sampling  and analysis  methods and
quality assurance are fully documented
in the appendices.
          A. Trenholm, P. Gorman, and G. Jungclaus are with Midwest Research Institute.
           Kansas City, MO 64110.
          Donald A. Oberacker is the EPA Project Officer (see below).
          The complete report consists of five volumes, entitled "Performance Evaluation of
           Full-Scale Hazardous Waste Incinerators:" (Set Order No. PB85-129492; Cost:
           $72.00, subject to change)
           "Volume I. Executive Summary," (Order No. PB 85-129 500; Cost: $8.50)
           "Volume!!. Incinerator Performance Results," (Order No. PB85-12951'8; Cost:
             $14.50)
           "Volume III. Appendices A and B," (Order No. PB 85-129 526; Cost: $ 16.00)
           "Volume IV. Appendices C through J, "(Order No. PB85-129 534; Cost: $28.00)
           "Volume V. Appendices K and L." (Order No. PB 85-129 542; Cost: $ 17.50)
          The above reports will be available only from: (cost subject to change)
                 National Technical Information Service
                 5285 Port Royal Road
                 Springfield, VA 22161
                 Telephone: 703-487-4650
          The EPA Project Officer can be contacted at:
                 Hazardous Waste Engineering Research Laboratory
                 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
                 Cincinnati, OH 45268
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